Researchers from the NFB promoted science and research at the 2011 Galway Science and Technology Festival Exhibition, part of the Discover Science’s National Science Week, held on the NUI Galway campus on November 27th.
The event attracted 24,000 visitors and was attended by the European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science Maire Geoghegan-Quinn.
As part of the NFB’s outreach programme, volunteers manned an interactive display at the event, which provides an opportunity for young people to engage with scientists and researchers and to get in touch with science and technology. Many of the 78 stands at the event featured exhibits and experiments on medical technologies, not surprising due to Galway’s position as a major hub in the biomedical sector.
The NFB is an SFI-funded Strategic Research Cluster, focused on developing the next generation of biomaterials for use in novel medical therapies. The NFB exhibition stand featured a broad range of experiments from the very simple, to highly complex, based on varying themes including polymer chemistry, stem cells, bacterial cultures and biomaterials.
Visiting members of the public were able to run experiments and discuss the set-up and results with researchers. A simple experiment on mirror writing, set up to demonstrate functionality in the brain proved the most popular attraction on the day.
